Protecting Children’s Health: American Academy of Pediatrics Misses the Big Picture in Their Flawed ‘Organics’ Analysis

By Charlotte Vallaeys
The Cornucopia Institute 

For the first time, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has weighed in on organic foods for children.  Its news release was widely covered in the national media.

While the AAP should be commended for acknowledging the potentially harmful effects of pesticide residues on conventional foods, their report—and associated press coverage—is […]

New Junk Science Study Dismisses Nutritional Value of Organic Foods

by Alliance for Natural Health

You’d think Stanford would be above such sloppy research. You’d be wrong.

Stanford University researchers conducted a meta-analysis (a selection and summary) of seventeen studies in humans and 230 field studies of nutrient and contaminant levels in unprocessed foods (e.g., fruits, vegetables, grains, milk, eggs, chicken, pork, and meat).

The study, published yesterday in The […]

Court: Pesticide drift could be trespassing violation

by David Unze
sctimes.com
The state Court of Appeals ruled Monday that pesticide drifting from its intended farm onto an adjacent Stearns County organic farm could be considered a trespassing violation by the company that sprayed the pesticide.
The appellate court ruling reinstates a lawsuit filed by organic farmers Oluf and Debra Johnson against Paynesville Farmers Union […]

Regulators Knew World’s Best-Selling Herbicide Causes Birth Defects

by Lucia Graves
Huffington Post
WASHINGTON — Industry regulators have known for years that Roundup, the world’s best-selling herbicide produced by U.S. company Monsanto, causes birth defects, according to a new report released Tuesday. The report, “Roundup and birth defects: Is the public being kept in the dark?” found regulators knew as long ago as […]

Big Ag doesn’t want you to care about pesticides

by Tom Laskawy
Grist

Power to the people pesticide industry! Photo from Grist
The produce lobby is livid that consumers might be concerned about pesticides. They are taking their fury out on the USDA for its annual report on pesticide use (via The Washington Post):

In a recent letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, 18 produce […]

Monsanto Chemical Shown to Cause Infertility and Super Weeds

by Dr. Mercola

Monsanto’s herbicidal chemical glyphosate could cause infertility or cancer. It may also be speeding the growth of super weeds and causing worrying changes to plants and soil.

The chemical, which has long been touted as a safe part of global food production, is now at a crossroads. Regulators in the United States and […]

Honeybees ‘entomb’ hives to protect against pesticides, say scientists

‘Entombed’ pollen is identified as having sunken, wax-covered cells amid ‘normal’, uncapped cells. Photograph: Journal of Invertebrate Pathology
by Fiona Harvey, environment correspondent
guardian.co.uk
Honeybees are taking emergency measures to protect their hives from pesticides, in an extraordinary example of the natural world adapting swiftly to our depredations, according to a prominent bee expert.

Scientists […]

Is a Pesticide Harming All Those Bees?

By FELICITY BARRINGER
New York Times

For several years, Tom Theobald, a beekeeper in Boulder, Colo., has been trying to check out his suspicions that a relatively new class of pesticides has been interfering with the normal breeding and development of his stock. The pesticides, based on the chemistry of nicotine, are generically called neonicotinoids. They […]

Head of CA Department of Pesticide Regulation Leaves Post to Work for Chemical Giant

by Bridget Huber
Civil Eats
California’s top pesticide regulator is leaving her job to work for Clorox. Mary-Ann Warmerdam, the director of the Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR), announced her resignation on Tuesday. Warmerdam’s departure was voluntary, but environmental and public health advocates have been pushing for her removal for months. They say she let the chemical industry’s […]

U.S. Study Links Pesticides to Parkinson’s Disease

by Dr. Mercola
U.S. researchers have found that people who used two types of pesticides were 2.5 times as likely to develop Parkinson’s disease. The pesticides in question are paraquat and rotenone, which are not approved for house and garden use. Research on animals had already linked paraquat to Parkinson’s.

According to Yahoo News: “Rotenone directly inhibits the […]